Jakarta. Philippine and Indonesian shares posted record closing highs on Wednesday (04/10) as overnight gains on Wall Street buoyed sentiment across Asia, while Thailand edged down after scaling a 24-year peak.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose as much as 0.3 percent. Philippine stocks extended gains to a fourth session, led by financial and telecom stocks, as expectations of a tax overhaul continued to boost investor optimism.

The proposed tax reform measures will only have a modest inflationary impact and will not need a monetary policy response, said Nestor Espenilla the central bank governor, who also brushed off a sharp decline in the peso currency in an upbeat message on the economy.

The tax measures seek to expand the value-added tax base, raise excise taxes on fuel and automobiles, and slap levies on sugar-sweetened beverages among other changes.

They were approved by the lower house of Congress in May, but have yet to be endorsed by the Senate. Blue-chip BDO Unibank rose 2.1 percent to close an all-time high, while telecom service provider PLDT closed 2.4 percent higher.

Indonesia's benchmark index closed 0.2 percent higher, extending gains from the previous session, helped by energy and material stocks. Health care products maker Kalbe Farma climbed nearly 3 percent, while shares of mining contractor United Tractors rose as much as 3.8 percent to hit an all-time high and were on track for their fifth straight session of gains.